Bizarre! I think that is the only word I can use to describe this peculiar piece of cinema. This quirkiest of stories is set in a school run by the pristinely attired "Jan Stevens" (Gwendoline Christie). Every year she invites a group to her exclusive school where they use a mix of actual ingredients as well as audio equipment and cooking techniques to create what I think they describe as an "alimentary performance". Nope - I didn't know what was going on either, but as this curious story develops we discover that this is only the half of it. The group of noise-makers is led by "Lamina" (Ariana Labed) with "Elle"(Fatma Mohamed) and the hugely fringed "Billy" (Asa Butterfield) and soon it becomes clear that the former has history with their host and the latter ends up sharing her bed... Nope, I still didn't really know what was supposed to be happening - especially when some device they were using on the sound mix was mysteriously kidnapped, only to end up in an exhibition jar in a bedroom from where they try to retrieve it. Add to this, another group who applied but did not win entry to the institution are trying to assassinate "Miss Stevens" and the whole thing becomes and remains odd. Surreal - even. Entertaining in spurts, yes - the characterisations once laid bare can be amusing but I found it too long. The eccentricities of the characters and the plot became too zany for me and by the end I was no longer entertained, but rather I felt disappointed. I will admit I am not great with films that leave all sense of reality at the front door - which this most certainly does, but I didn't hate it. Perhaps another watch on television might enlighten me further, but I cannot in all honesty recommend it to anyone unless you have an on/off relationship with this planet!
2022-10-20
